On Monday, a man was arraigned on charges accusing him of running over and seriously injuring a Montana Highway Patrol trooper in Eureka.
Jason A. Miller pleaded not guilty in Lincoln County District Court to one count each of attempted deliberate homicide, criminal endangerment, criminal mischief, criminal possession of dangerous drugs and aggravated kidnapping, court filings show. All of the charges are felonies.
Trooper Lewis Johnson, 36, was severely injured on Feb. 16 near Eureka after he was hit by a pickup, according to officials.
Lincoln County charging documents allege that after Miller failed to report to probation and parole, an arrest warrant was issued for him. When law enforcement found Miller on Feb. 16, he failed to stop in his pickup truck and a chase ensued.
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On a U.S. Forest Service road off Highway 37, Johnson and a sheriff’s deputy approached Miller’s car with their weapons drawn when Miller allegedly accelerated out of a snow pile, running over Johnson, according to charging documents.
As Miller continued to drive away, a woman jumped out of the passenger door of the truck. Miller was apprehended shortly after, but not before he allegedly rammed into a game warden’s truck. When authorities searched his car, they found a substance that tested positive for methamphetamine.
Miller’s next hearing is scheduled for June 19 in Lincoln County District Court. He’s in custody at the Lincoln County jail.
Johnson sustained a punctured lung, damaged liver, head injury, broken ribs, broken arm, broken leg and severe spinal trauma. His wife, Kate Johnson, who is also an MHP trooper, thanked medical staff for the care given to her husband. A GoFundMe for the trooper and his family has amassed over $200,000.
